The use of doxa in Greek literature with special reference to the New Testament.

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The use of doxa in Greek literature with special reference to the New Testament.

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DOCTOML DISSERTATION SERIES Tin c TUt USL t f ùùïk IIISitU

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y UNIVERSITY MICROFILMS ANN ARBOR • M I C H I G A N

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THE USE OF DOXA IN GREEK LITERATURE With special reference to the New Testament

By Everett F. Harrison 1950 A Dissertation In the History of Religion

Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Chairman of the Graduate Group in History of Religion

Supervisor of Dissertation

PREFACE The word

has fascinated Greek scholars for

several decades and has invited considerable research, but it has always^been acknowledged that in view of the difficulties Involved in tracing its history and in view of the wide ramifications of its use, there is still room for further research.

The hope of adding something, how­

ever small, to the store of knowledge on this subject has been the inspiration of this dissertation, A full statement of the problem can only come with the unfolding of the materials themselves, but it can be stated here in brief.

In classical Greek the word has

such meanings as thought, opinion, expectation, appear­ ance, honor, reputation.

But in the New Testament it

is not found in the sense of thought or opinion, though the sense of honor and also of reputation is retained. As though to compensate for loss of a portion of its semantic content,

i o^4_ has meanwhile gathered to it­

self the meaning majesty or splendor, which is at times external in force, denoting light, and again may be ab­ stract, used in the sense of worth or excellence.

11

Much the same situation is presented by the Septuagint use of the word.

Since the New Testament is so

largely permeated by the verbiage and atmosphere of the Septuaglnt, the explanation for the New Testament use of iSd£ 4. would àèem to lie in the Septuaglnt.

But since

the concrete or realistic meaning of the word is also found in other than Biblical sources, the possibility of outside Influence must be faced, whether on the New Testament or the Septuaglnt or both.

If the evidence

seems to warrant the conclusion that the semantic shift in

is due to Septuaglnt rather than other in­

fluence, then the problem remains of accounting for the change in terms of the Septuaglnt Itself. In addition to attacking this central problem, the dissertation also is designed to give a reasonable cover­ age of the usage of the word in the various phases of Greek literature. the New Testament.

Chief emphasis has been placed upon Only so much of the patristic ma­

terials are drawn upon as are deemed sufficient to re­ veal to what extent previous usage prevails and to what extent there may be any new departure.

The disserta­

tion does not have in view the field of modern Greek* Materials on

are touched here and there,

and a summary treatment of the usage of the verb is given on pages 214-220. ill

For the most part, the translations are those of the writer, but here and there the work of scholars who have labored on the same texts has been utilized. References to fhllo and Josephus follow the scheme of enumeration employed in the Loeb Classical Library.

iv

CONTENTS

Chapter I

Page The Etymology of DOXA

1-2

II

DOXA

in the Classical Period

3-19

III

DOXA

in the Hellenistic Period

IV V VI VII VIII

IX X XI

The Use

of DOXA in the Septuaglnt

20-24 25-55

DOXA in the Apocrypha and Pseudeplgraphs

56-68

DOXA in Philo and Josephus

69-79

The Glory of God in Rabbinic Judaism

80-85

DOXA in the Hermetic Writings, the Magical Papyri, and the Mystery Religion Literature

86-101

DOXA In the New Testament

102-220

DOXA in the Patristic Writings

221-225

The Theology of DOXA

226-240

Chapter I The Etymology of DOXA

A

a. Is a noun of feminine gender, derived from

the parent Indo-Germanic doktja.

The combination of t

and j became ts in primitive Greek.1 ts then became s.2

As Wright indicates,

The two consonants k and s were of

course merged into the double consonant

in accord-

ance with the regular rule, yielding at last the form

There seems to be no room for doubt that rives from

d o /< 6 w

4. de­

, the original meaning of which was

"to think" or "to suppose,"

An extension of this usage

readily included a closely related concept, "to have an opinion,"

The impact made upon the thinker's conscious­

ness by his own thought or even by perception needed a descriptive term, so J o h^eroj was pressed into service here too, coming to mean "to seem," A considerable cluster of words stem from the common root

doK

- such as ^ o ^ J L.f) cù

to wait for (note "expecta­

tion" as one meaning for J c) o K iyui a £ 10 to prove,

to observe,

éo ^i^o s

^ o Kn/u 4- vision, fancy,

approved,

d o K n

,

o %n / 1

These are the words of the Trojan warrior Delon with which he offers himself to Hector for reconnalsence duty. And I will not be a profitless scout to you nor will I conduct myself contrary to your expectation*

Friends, our prudent queen Indeed speaks not wide of the mark or of our expectation. In both cases the phrase Tfcfte

& o £ q ,v

étiré

has the same force as

in later usage.

By the time istic principal meanings.

In toe Pythian Odes 1.70 the hope

Is expressed that the city will bo famous in the future for its victory wreaths. pectation.

The sense Is closely related to ex-

In the Hemean Odes 11.70 one finds the yhra so

111. x, 324.

4

"in my judgment" (èjiàv praise or fame.

) .1

The third meaning is

Since Pindar's odes are "occasional" poetry,

written largely to commemorate some victory in the games, in the sense of glory are fairly common.

examples of ^ O p H

He refers to "the fame of men which survives death."2 Turning to the tragic poets, we find examples of our word in the three leading authors:

Aeschylus, Sophocles,

and Euripides, with the last-named, writer predominating. Aeschylus has this sentence: ou

pa.

jSjOtifouirnG

W

X^jSo/yK./ flf*evo& .

3

111 would not take the oplnion of a slumbering mind." In the Hercules Furens of Euripides 714 contrast to proof.

is used in

Still within the broad category of

thought is such a statement as the following by Euripides: tffeï i' C5 77 b * y t-G'n\§e.Y To what end did the thought occur to you to cast forth the child? The translation of

o^ec

in this case by either thought or

expectation conveys the sense. is only a slight step, and

4 opit,

"*"0f. Olympian Odes 6.140. 2Pythlan Odes 1.180. ^Agamemnon 266. ^lon 964.

From expectation to hope is equal to the

demands of the situation.

Hence Euripides can write of

those who are borne along by a common hope (of gaining wealth)Thought

in the sense of motive is possible here.

Opinion shades off readily enough into fancy, and this is a not uncommon meaning of

It is required in

such a passage as this: » > _v D U * £ i *• / ' . _v eyreiTA ^ o-'£ 7 7 % k t - * , r ^ . ^ct^a. £.tt

r* ^

o u ct/a ,

^

-7 7-»

*a i _ € d O t «. i^ , with the one preposition c'5 doing service for both words, or It is correlative with

by Jesus Christ.

Here the verb

) came

y

e y e-^e-Tio

may have been

deliberately chosen to bring the thought into line with

Ijn. 8:32, 36. 2Cf. Jn. 1:11.

verge 14, where the same verb Is used to state the fact of Incarnation* Before leaving this portion of the Gospel, It will be in order to note that although John has nothing to say of the Transfiguration as an event of gospel history, which may be due to his desire to encourage the readers to think on such a theme from the noumenal rather than the phenomenal aide, as something discernible to the eye of faith through*» out the whole mission of Jesus and rightly belonging to his character, yet the very passage we have been considering, when seen in the broad context of the Prologue as a whole, emphasizes a most important feature of the Transfiguration* Howard cites the special contribution of Lohmeyer, in which the latter points out the prominence given to Jesus as teacher or revealer*^ this.

A glance at Mark 9:4,7 will confirm

Such an emphasis is certainly resident in John*s

term Logos, and is explicitly brought to the fore in verses 14 and 18,

Again we have proof that the theological rather

than the historical as such is John's absorbing interest. That John intends some relation between the Jesus and the term

£p au ro u. 1 Let us fasten our gaze on those who have per­ fectly served his excellent glory. There are references also to the external, revealed glory of G-od or Christ. o ’Iii